The Yoga Covid-19 Trauma Survival Guide
We souls bound to our homes during social distancing and quarantine due to the current COVID-19 pandemic may find it hard to cope with related anxiety and intense, real feelings of isolation.
This turbulent and uncertain time may even bring on panic attacks and cause built-up frustration because of the lack of normalcy and security that comes along with our day-to-day routines.
The Covid-19 pandemic is a mass historical event that is traumatizing people by the masses. However, we may find relief in the most peaceful activity — yoga.
Psychiatrist, Bessel van der Kolk, uses yoga to treat trauma and states that, “trauma is caused by a historical event that causes people to become afraid of the sensations of their bodies and they become anxious and fear what they are feeling inside. (van der Kolk, 2020)”
We have great resources such as yoga is proven to help with trauma at our beck and call by merely searching on YouTube or other social media sites. This crisis is real, and there are many different techniques of yoga at our fingertips to help us survive the anxiety of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The world is at our fingertips with a click of a button using devices such as our phones, computers, and smart TVs’. Yoga is not merely movement, but there are other branches we can access to maintain a healthy lifestyle while in quarantine.
Why Yoga? Yoga is said to be created by monks in Kodagu Malai Cave in India by monks who were self-isolated from the world. Yes, yoga manifested in an atmosphere in which a group of people existed in self-isolation. Yes, yoga was created to keep the isolated monk’s mind, bodies, and spirits healthy because of their living conditions. I had no clue that yoga was created in isolation until I visited Mumbai, in 2018, and dug deeper into the history.
Some Americans do not have a backyard to move around in without encountering other people or may live in a small apartment. Yoga is a way to stay healthy through diet, exercise, meditation, and breathing techniques, no matter how big or small space a person may be residing.
Yoga does not require special equipment to perform the exercises except the body, mind, and breath with which we are born. If a yoga mat is not available, that is fine, because a towel, a carpeted room, the grass in a safe area, or any slip-proof area will work!
There are eight limbs of yoga, and each limb has a specific purpose:
• Yama (Abstinences)
• Niyama (Observances)
• Asana (Yoga Postures)
• Pranayama (Breath Control)
• Pratyahara (Withdrawal of the senses)
• Dharana (Concentration)
• Dhyana (Meditation)
• Samadhi (Absorption).”
Yama and Niyamas’ can be read and are excellent philosophies to study. I recommend the book The Yamas & Niyamas Exploring Yoga’s Ethical Practice by Deborah Adele, for those who are intent on digging deeper into the philosophy of yoga — it was assigned reading while training for a related certification, and it can be found on many audible and PDF formats online along with many other books on the Yamas and Niyamas.
Take this time of isolation and crisis to learn new philosophies at it has nothing to do with personal faith systems or morality — it merely opens the mind to new ideas.
The most recognized limb of yoga is the Asana or postures and movement of yoga. When our minds and bodies are in a state of crisis or trauma, some resort to becoming stagnate that may lead to depression.
People can get overwhelmed with having kids at home and are running out of activities to keep them busy — yoga’s movement is a great way to destress while exercising, whether it be during a self-practice or one involves the entire family in a group practice. Besides, kids have natural flexibility and may be able to sustain greater flexibility by continuing to practice yoga movement throughout their lives.
Not only by practicing with children will us help maintain their health, but it may help them manage their stress levels through the trials of quarantine by connecting with them through yoga.
Studies have shown that “In addition to helping certain physical medical conditions and somatic dissociation, yoga has also been revealed to ease symptoms of anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, ADHD, and eating disorders (West, Lang, & Spinazzola, 2017).” Proving that yoga may be useful in a state of panic such as the pandemic self-isolation, the Americans are dealing with presently.
Asana should always be practiced with Pranayama, which is (the life-giving breath or breath control.) There is no better time to learn yogic breathing than in a time when our nation is dealing with a virus that attacks our raspatory system.
Being asthmatic myself and having panic disorders, I know that sometimes we forget to breathe when we are in a state of alarm. There are several different yogic breaths aimed to achieve different experiences and states of mind, and by focusing on breathing, one can gain better control of their body.
Most commonly, slow breathing is used to calm one’s self during a gentle yoga or Yin yoga practice. While during a more intense high paced practice such as vinyasa, they are shortened and more rapid to raise our heart rate, giving us energy.
Most yoga instructors will tell say that it does not matter if we nail the pose, but it matters if we can breathe. If we can breathe, then we can do yoga (Sugerman, 2020).
In a time of crisis, it is most important to focus on Pranayama’s that calm us, such as the Dirga Pranayama, known as the three-part breath. Also, Bhramari Pranayama, known as the bee’s breath, used for relaxation and Nadi Shodana Pranayama, used to clear the mind before yoga meditation or any practice.
These breathing techniques can be found by merely searching on the internet or many social media platforms such as YouTube.
I use Nadi Shondana Pranayama before I begin working with any branch of yoga with a group that is dealing with trauma because it calms while clearing the sinuses.
Sometimes in a time of crisis, some have issues with rest, and that is where the yoga limb Dhyana (Meditation) is a useful tool. There are several yoga meditations available on social media, and my personal favorite is yoga Nidra or (yoga sleep).
Yoga Nidra allows one to shut down their brain during meditation without falling asleep. While conducting a Nidra practice, my students lay on their backs or in the fetal position. It does not matter just as long as they are lying in the position in which they are most comfortable.
Forty-five minutes of yoga Nidra equals out to be around seven hours of sleep without disturbing our sleeping pattern. Many people use Nidra to help aid in achieving sleep, and there are several Nidras available for any intention one may have available online.
Self-quarantine and isolation give us a chance to explore different mechanisms to better ourselves and our family’s mental physical and spiritual health. I have just touched base on a few limbs of yoga. Still, several others can be researched and even studied in online courses such as Ayurvedic Yoga that includes a diet, medicinal herbs, massage, sound, smells, and colors to balance and align one’s physiology.
There are several devices that one can use for survival if one seeks them out and apply them to their situation.
I close with a quote from the Buddha “No one saves us but ourselves. No one can, and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.”
Sources:
More, L., 2020. Yoga Sutras Of Patanjali: The 8 Limbs Of Yoga Explained. [online] Liforme. Available at: <https://liforme.com/blogs/blog/8-limbs-yoga-explained> [Accessed 28 March 2020].
Sugerman, L., 2020. A Beginner’S Guide To Ujjayi Breath. [online] YogiApproved™. Available at: <https://www.yogiapproved.com/yoga/beginners-guide-ujjayi-breath/> [Accessed 28 March 2020].
van der Kolk, B., 2020. How Yoga Helps Heal Trauma: A Q&A With Bessel Van Der Kolk. [online] Kripalu. Available at: <https://kripalu.org/resources/how-yoga-helps-heal-trauma-qa-bessel-van-der-kolk> [Accessed 28 March 2020].
West, J., Liang, B., & Spinazzola, J. (2017). Trauma sensitive yoga as a complementary treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder: A qualitative descriptive analysis. International Journal of Stress Management, 24, 173-195. doi:10.1037/str0000040
Larry A. Boldman Jr. possesses an (MLST) Master’s in Religion and Culture with a focus on Asian Religion and Culture from Arizona State University. Boldman is also a Ph.D. candidate in Social Work, focusing on using holistic means such as yoga for trauma therapy. Boldman is also an adjunct professor of history at Shawnee State University, an RYT-200 yoga instructor, and a Reiki Master in Usui Shiki Ryoho.